TechWhirl (TECHWR-L) is a resource for technical writing and technical communications professionals of all experience levels and in all industries to share their experiences and acquire information.
For two decades, technical communicators have turned to TechWhirl to ask and answer questions about the always-changing world of technical communications, such as tools, skills, career paths, methodologies, and emerging industries. The TechWhirl Archives and magazine, created for, by and about technical writers, offer a wealth of knowledge to everyone with an interest in any aspect of technical communications.
Subject:Re: hyphenating email/e-mail/E-mail From:Bev Parks <bparks -at- HUACHUCA-EMH1 -dot- ARMY -dot- MIL> Date:Sun, 24 Dec 1995 12:39:22 MST
Keith Calvert Ivey <kcivey -at- CPCUG -dot- ORG> wrote-->
> I can understand those misguided folks who think that
> "e-mail" should be capitalized, since there are similar words
> ("J-school", "U-boat", "A-bomb") that are capitalized even
> though they aren't proper nouns.
I'm glad to see we agree that to capitalize the "e" in e-mail
based on such examples as "U-boat", "A-bomb", and "A-frame" is
misguided.
I don't think "e-mail" vs. "email" is worth debating.
I've only recently (within the last 4-5 months) converted to
the "email" school of thought, but I admit that some of your
samples above are good ones. I don't agree with Q-tips because
it is a registered trademark. I don't agree with O-ring,
I-beam, T-shirt, U-turn, and A-frame because their initial
(capital) letters represent the shape of the thing the word
represents; they are not abbreviations of words.
Happy Holidays,
Bev Parks
Work: bparks -at- huachuca-emh1 -dot- army -dot- mil
Home: bparks -at- primenet -dot- com
